Their Fragile Reunion
by Lil' Hedgepig
Summary: In the aftermath of their fight with Lotor, Voltron rescues the Prince from the Quintessence field at the pleading of Princess Allura. After regaining consciousness and finding himself in the hold of the Castle of Lions, Lotor and Allura must decide whether or not the bond they forged before the fight can still stand after everything that had transpired between them.


**Author's Note:** So, in a wonderful turn of fate, I found myself up until 5 AM last night roleplaying Voltron on Shamchat. This happened to be one of the most amazing scenes to come out of my time on the site so far and it left me absolutely in tears in the end because I'm a hardcore Lotura shipper myself. Sadly, the person left without sharing details, but I suppose that's fine since the RP did come to a fulfilling end, even though it might seem like it just fell off. Let me know what you think of it!

 ** _Their Fragile Reunion_**

When Lotor was found, he was barely conscious, his nearly destroyed ship drifting into the abyss of space without any clue as to how he got there, not that was awake to tell anyone. He faded in and out the entire time he was brought on board, but not even a few hours later he had to be sedated, his behavior erratic and borderline manic as he thrashed in his restraints, almost making his already existing wounds worse.

The sedative wore off hours later, and he woke with a dazed groan, "W... Where...?"

He'd find himself strapped to a chair encased in the same glass chamber that the Voltron team had kept him in before-hand when they hadn't fully given Lotor their trust.

Shiro promised Allura to keep watch over him. The decision to get him out of the void and bring him aboard sparked quite a bit of debate amongst the team, but they eventually settled, Allura still heartbroken over the outcome.

The Black Paladin stood on the other side of the glass, face stern and unmoving as he saw the prince regain consciousness.

"The Castle of Lions," he said simply.

He hissed a pained breath through his teeth, hunched over a little as a dull ache rocked through his skull, as well as the rest of his body. He looked, wincing at the bright light in his blurred vision until he saw an image of black and white. He knew that voice, as distant as it sounded, "...P...Paladin..?"

Shiro nodded, his arms crossed. "Yes," he confirmed. "You've got a lot to answer for, Lotor."

He shifted his arms, feeling them pinned behind him in a chair. He pulled against them, "What is..? Why am I..? Gods, my head... What happened to me?" His words slurred very slightly as he spoke, still trying to make sense of what was happening, where he was. "Where is Allura?"

Shiro watched on for several moments, his gaze calculating. After the prince finished speaking, Shiro approached the glass.

"You won't be seeing Allura until you tell me exactly what you think you were doing out there," he informed him. "Whether or not you remember any of it."

"Won't be seeing- What do you mean 'what I was doing out there'?" He looked completely bewildered by it all. Strapped down to a chair in a glass cage, interrogated by the Black Paladin himself, and Allura... He tried to think back, but all he found was a blinding, white gap in his memory, accompanied by a very distant ring in his ears that grew louder when he tried to remember.

"You nearly..." he started before trailing off in mounting frustration. "No, you did. You brought the galaxy to its knees in a sick and twisted betrayal, Lotor."

"...Forgive me if that accusation seems a bit wild, Paladin. From what I can feel, something brought me to my knees..." Cracked ribs, maybe a concussion. All he knew was that something gave him quite the beating.

Shiro took a moment to relax, now coming to an understanding of the situation.

"Lotor, how much of the last forty-eight hours can you recall?"

"Nothing. Everything has just... Faded to white." He looked down at the floor. "...Maybe longer? I don't know."

Shiro brought his hand to his chin, eyes sharply focused on the prince has he assessed what he had to say. They, admittedly, knew very little about the side effects that came with prolonged exposure to over-abundant Quintessence, and possible dissociation could've been an easily predictable consequence, granted Allura's summary of Zarkon's interactions with it.

It resulted in a man entirely different than the one who first entered into it.

The statistical possibility that Lotor made it out and regained his rational conscience was incredibly low, but here he was. Shiro chaulked it up to being a long-winded con or absolute honesty. Which one, he didn't know for sure.

"I see," he said simply.

He was silent for a moment before he hunched over again with a pained groan, the ache turning into a burn as his body begged him to rest it. He coughed, now noticing how raw his throat felt, but he should have noticed that from the rasp in his tone. Had he been screaming? The ringing in his ears grew louder as his vision swam a little, but he fought to stay conscious. He had to figure out what was going on... Or at least try to see Allura. Because he wasn't laying down, sitting in the chair made him feel heavy as his aching body reminded him of the beating he took.

"How do you feel?" Shiro asked, even though he had a pretty good idea from watching Lotor. He found it necessary to ask since part of him wanted to garner conversation with the prince. If there was even the slightest chance that Lotor acted outside of himself, there were many discussions to be had.

"I feel like I nearly escaped my own ship exploding, but stayed behind just in time to catch the shockwave." He snapped, the ringing getting louder with his sudden anger, "How's that for an evaluation?" As the ringing died down, so did his irritated expression, "...My apologies. I'm not sure where that came from."

Shiro's expression displayed his unsettling worry and uncountable intrigue at the prince's situation, his lips turning downward as he nodded politely.

"I get it," he said. "Still, I'm afraid that this whole ordeal isn't as cut-and-dry as others I've experienced, Lotor. I'll save you the details yet, but I need to know how exactly intact with yourself you are."

"Intact with myself? Afraid I've gone mad?" He shook his head, "I'm... Still here, I suppose. Everything is a bit hazy... And may have a concussion, there's a ringing in my ears that keeps fading in and out." He looked up at Shiro, "Among other injuries... But as of right now, I'm still... Here."

Shiro nodded, placing a hand on the glass. "It's a start," he said before retracting that hand to rub his chin in thought. "The others don't know you're awake yet, and I'd like to keep it that way. I'm sure it won't stay that way for long, though. Granted everything that's happened, I wouldn't be surprised if the vote came out to jettison you into space."

"I'm still completely oblivious to what exactly happened out there, but honestly at this point death would be a blessing." There was a hollow tone in his voice, "Just... Please. Tell me Allura is okay."

Shiro sucked in an uneasy breath before nodding. "Allura's fine. She's heartbroken, but still on her feet. I don't know if letting her see you would make that worse or better."

Heartbroken..? He looked confused. If what Shiro had said was true, about betraying Voltron... Panic welled in his chest, a bit evident in his voice, "Oh stars, please tell me I did not injure her."

"You didn't injure more than her heart," he muttered before looking behind himself. "Again, she's alright. She didn't even take a scratch from the fighting."

He turned back to Lotor, his focus on him. "She was the one who made the call to pull you out of the Quintessence field."

He sighed out in relief but knowing that his unknown actions hurt her emotionally bore a hole in his chest. At least in his psychotic state, he still had the will to not aim directly at her. "...I suppose asking to see her is out of the question."

Shiro hung on it for several moments, his eyes downcast as he contemplated the consequences. He decided to keep the fact that Allura had persistently requested to see Lotor, even in his unconscious state. He'd dismissed every attempt for her own good since he knew there was going to be a lot unknown to him about Lotor's condition.

He seemed to be sound of mind... enough.

A look of hesitance played upon Shiro's features as he rolled the decision in his head.

"Not entirely," he said finally. "I'd argue it's still too early, but she needs it too much, I think. She took much of the blame of what happened to herself."

"Why would she blame herself? If I am truly the cause of this, then this all falls onto me. The blame is my own." As much as he wanted to plead with the paladin to let him see her, the majority of him refused to do so. Not out of pride, but out of guilt and fear to see what his reign had brought upon her. He swallowed thickly, the hole in his chest digging deeper as his guilt clawed its way into him. "If I am unable to see her... Will you at least deliver a message for me?"

"She had made a comment that sent you into that blind rage," he said. "That's what she takes the blame for."

Shiro thought more on it before nodding at his request. "That, at the very least, I can do."

A comment set him off? He must have been far worse than he originally thought if that's what broke his sanity. He'd hadn't let snide comments get to him since he was a young boy, and since then he brushed off what was said about him. What had she said?

He gave Shiro a weak smile, "Tell her 'Hello, Starlight'."

Shiro took in a breath and nodded. He offered the prince a deep smile in trust before slipping his hands into his pockets. As he took the message and readied himself to turn around. His face would see that of the Princess. Shiro's face morphed into surprise, seeing her there in the doorway with the phantom trails of tears from her eyes as she had her focus set on the awake prince.

"Princess, you shouldn't-"

"It's alright, Shiro," she replied to him, her stance unwavering even though she expected him to try and talk her back upstairs or something of the sort. She shifted her weight to one leg as she let her gaze drop temporarily before returning it to Lotor with a newfound desperation. "I had a feeling he'd woken up."

He'd looked up just in time to see her, and instead of smiling he felt the color drain from his face as his eyes went wide. Seeing the tears on her face, the restraints on his arms rattled as he attempted to move, his instinct to run to her still ever present. She was alive, she was physically okay, at least, and that drew another relieved breath from his chest.

"A-Allura..." His voice barely broke over a whisper, and for a moment he would have thought he was still unconscious if this was his dream.

"Lotor," she said in a whisper, though the acoustics of the chamber managed to carry it all the way to the prince. "Yes, it's me."

Shiro took a few steps towards the princess to shorten the distance. "Are you sure about this?"

Again, the Altean princess nodded. "Quite," she assured him. "I'm more than capable of handling myself right now, albeit I'm not necessarily in the most presentable fashion."

He looked away from her gaze, feeling a burning shame that made it hurt to look at her. While they spoke to one another, he ran over what he should even say to her. What could he say? I'm sorry, please forgive me? I remember nothing?

He fell silent as she approached the glass of his cell, his eyes cast downward to the side so he couldn't see the hurt in her eyes.

Ancients have mercy on him.

Allura's steps echoed against the far walls of the chamber, delicate ones that carried the resonance of tiny pins dropping against the cold, metal decking. She moved straight past Shiro without resistance, as the Black Paladin stood too stunned to try and govern the situation. Despite his reservations about it all, he couldn't bear to interrupt it without garnering tension to a situation that needed to resolve itself.

Shiro sighed, letting his capitulation speak through the expulsion of his stress, arms dropping to his side as he glanced back.

Allura did not stop until she found herself before the very edge of the glass, her eyes pearling up in her heartfelt pulsing of affection for the wayward prince. Yes, the events that transpired prior to this moment hung indefinitely in the back of her mind, but she happily let herself be blinded by something much more merciful and much more sentient.

"Lotor," she said simply before losing the will to speak as long as she could not see his eyes.

He shut his eyes upon hearing her voice, but instead of the royal soldier the majority if the galaxy knew him as, he looked almost like a frightened boy, too scared to answer her. His hands curled into fists bound behind him, wishing to embrace her once again and being unable to now left a hollow feeling in the pit of his stomach.

Even if he had no idea what he had done to her, the weight of his actions was crushing him. And her mercy was bittersweet in a way, knowing internally that he deserved none of it. He couldn't say a single word to her, unable to form anything while her gaze bore holes into him, knowing that he was the one who caused those tears. What a monster he was...

"Oh," she murmured, feeling a sense of realization swell up in her as her eyes meticulously captured every detail about his reaction and character. The hesitant expression that rested on her features slowly transitioning to a juxtaposition of feverish happiness- the sort of happiness that came at a great cost to her spirit.

At this moment, she felt that all prior incidents were nothing more than a nuance in the greater scheme of things, or at least, in the universe she wished to dwell in. Her hand pressed up against the glass now, palm flat against the transparent surface.

"It's," and this declaration took a great deal of tribulation in order to reach its completion, causing her to catch herself and start all over with it, "It's good to see you again."

He sighed out and raised his eyes to meet hers with a weak, saddened smile. He looked utterly exhausted, physically and mentally, and tied to that chair he felt like a prisoner seeing their family for a short time. "... Hello, starlight." His voice sounded tight, but he was definitely relieved and happy to see her. His eyes burned with tears he fought right back down, but that didn't stop the overall sorrow and shame on his features, even through the smile he tried to give her.

The sight caused her to bite down on her lip as feeble means to atone for the things that had caused all of this. She lost her cool in the face of so many contradicting facts and all it achieved was more pain for her soul to bear without a means of disposing of it properly. Even worse, she lost (for what felt like too many lifetimes) the only thing that the universe brought to her that could completely quell the troubling thoughts in her head and heart about the future.

If it weren't for Shiro, she would have already found a way to raise this prison and save him from the confines of the chair. Though, she seemingly felt just as tied up as he might've, just thinking over and over again about how isolated he felt in there and how painfully she caused this. Though, she would never live with herself again if she thought that leaving him there in a worse prison that'd destroy him would have been any better.

"Shiro, leave us," she dared, turning back briefly to connect to the Paladin's gaze. The authority and desperation paired intricately together and Shiro had no choice but to obey. He knew, deep down, that this defined Allura's heart and passion for this prince and he could not question it.

A moment later and he disappeared up the winding staircase.

Lotor's heart sank a little when he saw Shiro leave, growing nervous when he realized they were going to be alone in this room together. Under any other circumstance, he wouldn't have minded it. But right now, he had no idea what she had in store for him.

As soon as he saw the Black Paladin leave, he opened his mouth to say something, finding no words to say to her. He started and stopped, but he couldn't string together a single sentence to say.

She elected, at the moment, to sit cross-legged on the floor at the edge of the glass dome that encompassed him. Her head lowered she hastily drew through the waves upon waves of different scenarios that could occur with each possible action taken. She wanted so desperately to make the right one and the importance she placed on reaching that goal brought her to her knees. The fear of failure at this moment; to elicit the same outcome that she had when she spoke out of turn, became too much of a fervid fear for her.

She, too, could not think of something to say now.

"...I'm sorry." He said quietly, in a voice so timid it surprised him. "I'm... I'm so sorry."

She shut her eyes, shaking her head fervently at his pleas for forgiveness. Yes, she knew they were necessary, but she didn't feel like he had to be the one to speak them.

"I'm scared, Lotor."

"Scared... Of me?" It would be understandable, considering recent events. He kept his eyes on her, hoping to meet her gaze again.

She did not meet his. "I'm scared of this. Of us."

She gave herself to a labored breath before she braced herself with an arm against the ground.

"I'm scared I'll mess up."

"Allura, you are not at fault here. I am." He shifted in the chair, wincing at the painful pull of the restraints. "You have done nothing wrong."

"Please," she said, albeit a bit too forcefully, shivering in her place on the floor.

"I am at fault, just as much, if not more," she continued, her voice once again soft and considerate. "I caused you a great deal of pain. So much so that it became too much for you to bear. I should have realized..."

"Stop. You had done nothing wrong. Mere words are nothing compared to my retaliation." He glanced behind him, glaring down at what bound his wrists together.

She brought her other hand up to nip a few infant tears at the source as she got to her feet once more, now pressing both of her hands against the glance as she looked into it towards the inhabitance.

"I should've considered my actions before acting so... so out of tune with reality," she said. "I abandoned so much of what we built for hostility and ignorance."

He looked back at her. It hurt him so much to see her cry, but the fact that he couldn't run and comfort her hurt him even more. "Stars... What have I done to you..?" That was more of a quiet, guilt line question to himself rather than one to her. His eyes burned again, but tears never fell from his face. Although he looked a bit misty-eyed.

"Lotor, I'm sorry for what I did," she said. "And," she took a moment to find her voice once more. "And I trust you are as well, even if the others might not."

She glanced over to the side of the platform and saw the control panel. She approached it, taking a moment to gaze over the array of inputs before entering the ones necessary for raising the glass holding chamber back to the ceiling.

As the glass rose, he looked up at it in alarm. "W... What are you doing?"

"It's alright," she promised, coming back out to stand in the middle of the platform, about where the edge of the holding chamber would have been a moment ago. "It's not right of me to hold you here."

He sat up in his chair, confused by her actions and ultimately speechless. Even after what he'd done, her mercy still amazed him.

Allura found his ultimate confusion to be something worth offering a small smile towards, ever aware of the lack of mercy he received in his youth. Perhaps that was the balancing aspect of their relationship- the element which separates them from their fathers. She has the opportunity now to provide him with something Zarkon never received- mercy. Without it, Zarkon transformed into a bitter and resentful man only lusting for that which was denied of him.

In a similar fashion, Lotor was much like his father, and perhaps (though Allura would sooner curse the Gods than admit it) there was an inherit fate he'd experience because of the way his father lived. She wanted to do things differently- to prevent that horrid transformation that ruined a friendship that lasted nearly an entire lifetime.

"Lotor," she whispered, daring to take a step closer. "There are so many things my heart yearns for at this moment. So many more things that I'd rush after blindly but... but I'm not sure how to even think of approaching them without making a mistake that could set us back even further."

He would have taken a step backward if not for his confinements in the chair, his eyes locked on hers as she grew closer. A part of him felt a surge of panic, seeing as he couldn't go anywhere, but he tried to keep himself relaxed, knowing that she wouldn't hurt him. That flight response was still there, making him swallow nervously. He was silent as she came forward, but he had his back pressed firmly on the back of the chair, anxious feelings climbing their way into his gut.

The shock his reaction slammed into her and she realized it within a moment, taking two step backs for the one she dared to take, hands held just a bit ahead of her torso as seeing him tore her heart into pieces. She wanted the moments of their happiness back too soon and she realized that, then, too.

"You're," and she swallowed, the fear of the unknown burning in her eyes. "You're afraid of me, aren't you?"

"What..? Oh, no no." He shook his head, "... Well, yes, but not in that way." He shifted his arms to make the restraints known, "Being confined without any means of escape... Tends to make one anxious. Boxed in, trapped..." He offered her a small smile, "I am not afraid of you, Allura. Just a bit of my own anxiety."

That seemed to settle her fears for the moment. Her arms returned to her sides as she resumed a more natural, yet sheepish stance. She brought a hand over to her arm and hooked it, her head tilted down and off to the side before she glanced up at him.

"May I come over?"

He nodded, "Please." His gentle tone held no fear, held no apprehension towards her. He relaxed in his chair.

She carefully crossed the remaining distance, her fingers pressed together as she attempted to maintain her composure before stopping just a few inches from him, the proximity generating concern as she finally had the opportunity to better look him over.

"Lotor," she whispered, wiping her face of a few stray tears. "I cannot hide how..." she took a breath. "How much I've missed you."

"And I cannot hide how much it pains me to see you like this. As soon as I woke, my first thoughts were of you, wondering where you were. If you were okay..." His eyes cast downwards, "I was so afraid that my rage had physically harmed you..." He trailed off, shaking his head at the thought.

"It must all still be confusing to you," she replied. "And, if I had the strength, I'd recount it for you, but I'd fear," she smiled rather sadly at this. "I'd fear I'd cry more than I am now."

Gods, he wanted to hold her. "Please don't... I can't stand to see you in tears, especially when I can't give you any physical comfort."

Her smile lightened up a bit, looking at him now. Her eyes poured forth with the affection she had for him. "Truthfully, it's all I've wanted since I saw you awake."

"Then I beg of you, please release the restraints on my arms."

And then her smile saddened as she faded slightly, "Lotor, I..." she started but found a lump in her throat. "I'm scared that... that, I'm not sure what is..."

"What is the best choice here?" He nodded, "You don't have to... But I would give anything just to embrace you again."

If only it wasn't this hard. She choked on her tears a bit, closing her eyes as she heard his words pass by her ears. "I know," she said after a moment. "Just... how can I be sure that... Oh, there's so much fear in my heart after everything that's happened."

"I swear to you I will not harm you or make any attempts to escape." He was being sincere in that statement. He had no desire to harm her, and escape was not an option.

She took a breath and nodded. Even after it all, she found herself easily willing to trust her life in his hands. She hurried then over and undid the restraints as quickly and nimbly as she could manage at the moment, and once they snapped off his wrists, she altogether collapsed into his hold. She threw her arms around his neck and in a moment, she had no chance at stopping the rush of tears that overtook her so quickly.

Immediately his arms held her close to him, threading his fingers through her hair comfortingly while his other arm wrapped around her waist. He hid his face in her shoulder, letting out a shuddering sigh, "I'm sorry for what I've done... I'm so sorry for hurting you."

At that moment, something happened that he prayed she couldn't here, but he knew she could. The bit of weakness he never displayed that put an enormous crack into his demeanor; His voice cracked under the weight of his guilt, and he couldn't stop his own tears this time.

Too lost in her own wave of tears, she blissfully stayed in his arms, unaware of his own vulnerabilities. Rather, at that moment, she would have believed it to be natural that he joined her. Hearing his apologies, he shook her head against his shoulder.

"I love you so much." He admitted, "You've shown me a kindness that... That I haven't felt for a long, long time..." He hugged her to him, "I'm so sorry..."

"Lotor," she managed amidst muffled tears and a hoarse voice. "Lotor, I love you. Gods, I love you. It hurt... so much to live through that... fighting you... never again."

He pulled back and cupped her cheeks to wipe the tears from her eyes, almost unaware of his own. "You have no idea... How much I've wanted to hear to say that."

She gave him a smile- the most genuine and wide of all smiles she'd spared throughout the evening. She nodded briefly before leaning a hand up and joining in wiping his own tears from his face with her delicate fingers.

"Lotor, I always held onto the good that was inside of you. I knew it was there, even when it didn't seem like it," she told him. "The others... they... they wanted to leave you in the Quintessence field to... to, oh! I don't know, but I couldn't."

He placed one of his hands over hers and leaned into her touch, feeling warmth swell inside of him for knowing she still had faith in him.

A faint memory came back, "...When we arrived after testing out the Sincline ships for the first time, our moment together..." He chuckled quietly, "I was sure you would have dropped me the moment I leaned in to kiss you."

She shook her head before leaning to replace the scene with a kiss, soft and slow, in this one. She laid her head on his shoulder, curling up into his hold and cherishing his protection and comfort. "I loved you too much, even back then, to do that," she whispered.

At first, he froze when he felt her lips against his, but he embraced it by kissing back. He loved her so much it was going to kill him, but at that moment he'd be happy to go if that would be his last memory.

He held her to him and kissed the top of her head after she'd broken away, "I love you so much, Starlight..." Where he decided to call her that, he had no idea, but it seemed to fit her.

"Such a beautiful name you've picked out," she assured him, her voice faint as she settled against him. "I'm not worthy of it, to be truthful."

"I disagree. You shine as bright as a burning star, Princess." He smiled, "And I've always loved the stars."

And at that moment, her features would glow to compliment her new namesake, rays of happiness beaming from her revitalized form She lifted a hand up, laying it gently against the prince's cheek. "Oh, how I've missed you," she said softly.

"I've missed you too." He softly kissed her, smiling against her lips.


End file.
